Barracuda Networks, Inc., a leader in email and Web security appliances, has launched the Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG, the first and only enterprise-class Web Application Controller available for small and medium businesses (SMBs). Ideal for SMBs on a tight IT budget, this is the first appliance to fully secure Web applications and ensure compliance with regulations, such as Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) for under 8,000.

"We are essentially bringing plug-and-play PCI compliance to the mass market," said Stephen Pao, vice president of product management for Barracuda Networks. "Until now, most businesses in the SMB space were facing very expensive and time-consuming audits of their Web infrastructures in order to achieve PCI compliance. Further, these audits would be required every time the organisation makes a change to their Web applications, so it is very possible that such costs could very quickly overwhelm a business.

"With the Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG small and medium businesses will no longer have to worry about the recurring costs of application source code audits and instead they can achieve PCI DSS compliance without breaking the budget," added Pao.

As the June 30, 2008 deadline mandating e-commerce businesses of all sizes be compliant with requirement 6.6 of PCI DSS quickly approaches, many SMB organisations have been left with no choice but to prepare for very expensive and very detailed custom application code reviews. The Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG now provides these organisations with a cost-effective and powerful solution that will protect and maintain their Web infrastructure as well as satisfy PCI DSS requirements.

Comprehensive Web site Protection

The Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG brings the same award-winning protection from Web site threats, such as unauthorised access, data theft, denial of service or defacement, offered in the full Barracuda Web Application Controller line. The Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG secures against all common Web application threats including SQL injections, cross-site scripting attacks, session tampering and buffer overflows. Operating as a full proxy the Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG inspects both request and response traffic, providing the capabilities to not only block inbound attacks, but also to shield SMB business Web sites from hackers and to filter outbound traffic, preventing sensitive data leakage, such as Social Security and credit card numbers. In addition the Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG integrates traffic management capabilities including caching, compression and load balancing, enabling Web application security as well as an increase in performance and availability of the applications. Incorporating these features into the Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG eliminates the need for multiple devices on the network, which ultimately brings down the user's total cost of ownership.

The introduction of the Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG is the first model to be added to the Barracuda Web Application Controller product line since Barracuda Networks completed the acquisition of NetContinuum, the leading provider of Web Application Firewalls, in September 2007.

"One of our goals in acquiring NetContinuum was to deliver industry-leading capabilities to a set of customers who had previously been unable to deploy Web site security solutions," said Pao. "With the launch of the new Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG we are combining Web application security, traffic management and SSL acceleration into an easy to use and affordable solution for protecting Web sites of all sizes."

Pricing and Availability

The Barracuda Application Gateway NC 500 AG is currently available and priced at 7,750. International pricing varies by region.

Other Resources

IT Reseller

Established since 1997, IT Reseller is the industry-leading journal for the channel, dedicated to providing cutting-edge news and advice on a wide variety of vertical technology sectors. The editorial comprises exclusive reports on technological and market trends, together with contributions by leading solutions vendors and research analysts; helping resellers, VARs, systems integrators and distributors to secure a competitive edge by running their business more efficiently and more profitably. Regular technology themes include: Automatic Data Capture, RFID, Convergence Technology/Comms, Cloud Computing, Printing & Labelling, Document Management, Networking and UPS.